Kenya Braces for Battle as War on Smoking Hits Third World

Officials and health care activists, determined to fight an increase in smoking-related diseases in another Third World market, are pushing legislation to reduce Kenya’s growing demand for tobacco.

A bill sponsored by the Ministry of Health with the backing of anti-smoking activists calls for a crackdown on placing cigarette billboards in areas accessible to children under age 18 and would prohibit tobacco companies from sponsoring sporting events. It also would ban tobacco advertising on television and radio, impose stiff penalties for selling cigarettes to underage smokers and declare most public places to be smoke-free.

The bill comes as concern is rising about an explosion of cigarette smoking in Third World countries.

With the United States and Europe beginning to win their own wars against smoking, research by the World Bank shows that cigarette manufacturers are seeking to boost markets in developing countries.

Kenyan health care officials seem determined not to allow more of their citizens to get hooked. Although no official statistics exist, medical observers estimate that as many as 5 million people, about a third of Kenya’s adult population, are smokers. And the numbers are rising.

The Tobacco Control Committee, affiliated with the Kenya Medical Assn., accuses the tobacco industry of using advertising strategies that target young people. It blames lax regulations for the increase in smoking among youth.

Only a basic warning is required on cigarette packs, and in some cases it is nearly illegible. Some billboards carry no warnings at all. Unlike in the United States, proof of age is not required when purchasing cigarettes in Kenya.

“[Cigarette] advertisements are very attractive, especially to young people like me, because we normally want to look like the people we see in the advertisements,” said Edwin Onyango, 18, a high school graduate who started smoking at age 13.

“Tobacco is a drug, and at any kiosk you can get a [cigarette] stick,” said Dr. Charles Maringo, vice chairman of the Tobacco Control Committee. “We need to change those dynamics.”

Anti-smoking activists want the final tobacco bill to require that at least 30% of a cigarette pack be covered with a stronger warning, such as “smoking kills,” and state the quantity of substances contained, such as tar, nicotine and carbon monoxide.

Anti-smoking forces also are pushing for the creation of a Tobacco Products Regulatory Board, which would monitor and regulate marketing and sales.

Kenya’s poor may suffer disproportionately from smoking-related diseases because tobacco is cheap. Individual cigarettes can be purchased for less than 4 cents apiece. The most popular brands here retail for less than $1 for a pack of 20.

Medical officials confirmed an increase in the number of cases of tobacco-related lung cancer, asthma, cardiovascular disease and premature death.

Still, it is unclear whether parliament will approve new controls.

More than a million Kenyans owe all or some of their livelihood to tobacco through farming, retailing or advertising. Cigarette manufacturers say that, without tobacco, the Ministry of Finance’s revenues would suffer a shortfall of nearly $100 million a year.

Those who oppose new regulations also argue that banning indoor smoking would hurt Kenya’s lucrative tourism and hospitality industries because patrons of restaurants and bars would be likely to avoid facilities that enforce a smoking ban.

“Smoking is purely an adult choice,” said Titus Mutiso, manager of corporate and regulatory affairs at British American Tobacco (Kenya), which has done business in the country since 1907. “The public is appropriately informed of the risks. . . . Our advertising is targeted at adults who have already made a decision to smoke.”

Mutiso said his company limits its advertising on television to after 9 p.m. and that none of its billboards are placed near schools.

Regardless of who wins the political tussle, many Kenyans said anti-smoking laws would do little to curb the urge to smoke.

“I feel cool and relaxed after smoking,” said Phillip Peyie, 32, a company administrator, who smokes a pack a day. “It’s a way of getting rid of all my mental stress.”

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Samuel Hinga Mwangi of The Times’ Nairobi Bureau contributed to this report.